Visualizing experience: using creative research methods with members of sexual and gender communities

This chapter argues that visual methods may be particularly appropriate for the study of non- heteronormative sexualities and genders, particularly the more marginal identities and practices which have tended to be pathologised in, and excluded from, past research. We focus here on three of these: bisexuality (attraction to more than one gender, or regardless of gender), trans (moving away from the gender which was assigned at birth), and polyamory (having multiple sexual and/or intimate relationships). Of course trans people may be heterosexual, or indeed of any sexuality, but have tended to be marginalised in many of the same ways as people from non-heterosexual sexualities, and are consequently included in this chapter for that reason. First we briefly overview the history of qualitative research on non-heterosexual sexualities and trans, arguing that qualitative methods, per se, do not prevent researchers from forming limiting understandings and problematic generalisations about such groups. Then we present an alternative to conventional interview/focus group discussion research involving the use of visual methods. We summarise key reasons why this may be particularly appropriate to the exploration of those in marginalised sexualities, genders and relationship forms, and then present three examples, based in our own research, of the ways in which such research provided data which confounded simple celebratory or critical conclusions about people in these communities. Finally, we summarise some methodological considerations which are of value to those considering the use of visual methods in their own research

'Like a playground should be?' Experiencing and Producing Bi Subjectivities in Bisexual Space.

Much recent work on bisexual subjectivities has taken a discourse analytic approach to exploring how bisexual identity is discursively produced as paradoxical, and why it is so difficult to articulate a culturally intelligible bisexual subjectivity. This thesis responds to such work by suggesting that a move towards a multi-modal methodological approach, with a focus on the features of the lifeworld, might enable participants to articulate accounts of bisexual subjectivity as experienced in material, spatial, embodied, temporal, and intersubjective, terms. Accordingly, the thesis asks the question ‘how are bisexual subjectivities experienced and produced in bisexual spaces?’ Fieldwork was conducted at a BiCon, UK bisexual convention, in 2008, and the data presented here is based on the results of two studies which used creative and visual methods (photography, mapping, and modelling) to elicit discourse about lived experiences of bisexual subjectivity in a bisexual space, and how these related to everyday life. A hermeneutic phenomenological approach was taken to the analysis of the data produced. The study argues that the everyday bisexual subject, as constructed in dominant cultural discourses, can be theorised as a Trickster figure, characterised by excess and inauthenticity. BiCon, meanwhile, can be theorised as a heterotopic place-event, during which bisexuality is held constant as the default sexual identity within the space. This provides BiCon attendees with an opportunity to temporality resolve the paradox of bisexual subjectivity. For some participants, BiCon serves as a carnivalesque space where they can enjoy a brief respite from the contradictions of bisexuality. For others, BiCon is a place to gather resources for personal and social transformation

POWES as a heterotopia: looking askance at the neoliberal academy

Recent work in critical university studies suggests that conferences function as liminal spaces from within which we can 'look askance' at the neoliberal academy. In this paper, I consider what we might learn by both 'looking askance' at the university from within the heterotopic space of POWES, and 'looking askance' at POWES itself. What kind of 'conference moments' take place at POWES, and what do they tell us about the ways in which POWES both re-imagines and re-produces the contemporary academy? The paper closes with an invitation to participants to consider their own POWES 'conference moments' and to collaborate in a proposed collective critical auto-ethnography of POWES

Talkin’ ‘bout a revolution? From quiescence to resistance in the contemporary university

In discussing the events leading up to the resignation of the former Open University Vice Chancellor in April 2018, we focus on the enactment of a form of resistance against proposals for the university through a WhatsApp group, enabling rapid information exchange, discussion of tactics and concrete planning for action. We suggest our group – ‘the Hive’ - was unusual because, first, it countered the politically quiescent trend in academia to comply (at least outwardly) with neoliberalisation, and/or only to write about it, as opposed to mounting challenges. Second, the Hive was virtual; comprising various staff categories, including people based off-campus, it operated almost entirely online and many members had never met face-to-face. This for us evokes notions of the multitude. Third, the group exemplifies alternative forms of solidarity and resistance in other ways, being non-hierarchical, highly pluralist and non-exclusionary. Finally, our Hive provided a supportive, caring space for resisters, which we suggest emerged partly through members’ love for the distinctive social mission of The Open University - although our story also provides hope for harnessing similar emotions within other academic institutions

“I just filled out a form” Experiences of Doctoral Students with Disabilities, Long-term Health Conditions and/or Additional Study Needs

This paper reports on an empirical study at a public university in the UK. The project explored the lived experiences of doctoral students with disabilities, long-term health conditions and/or additional study needs. Taking a critical disability studies lens, we investigated how students perceive the university’s social and institutional structures. We used a mixed methods methodology using a survey and semi-structured interviews and adopted a reflexive thematic analysis to discover emerging themes. Three main themes were identified from the students’ data, namely, diversity in disability identity, the impact of supervisors’ attitudes (disclosure, emotional, institutional) and barriers to study. We argue that universities are implicitly organised around the needs of non-disabled, ‘normative’ students, hence perpetuating disadvantage and stigma. The paper makes suggestions for changes to institutions and processes to equitably support disabled doctoral students

Bisexual women's understandings of social marginalisation: 'The heterosexuals don't understand US but nor do the lesbians'

Drawing on interviews with 20 self-identified bisexual women, this paper contributes to the limited psychological literature on bisexual women by exploring their experiences of social marginalisation. These (mainly white and middle class) British bisexual women reported that they did not feel at home in either lesbian or lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities, nor in the wider (heteronormative) society. They identified a number of understandings - bisexuality as a temporary phase on the path to a fully realised lesbian or heterosexual identity and bisexuals as immature, confused, greedy, untrustworthy, highly sexual and incapable of monogamy - which they reported as arising from lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities and the wider society. The women refuted these accounts which they stated did not reflect their experiences of bisexual identity and which positioned bisexuality as invisible and invalid. © The Author(s) 2014 Reprints and permissions: sagepub.co.uk/journalsPermissions.nav

Embodying limb absence in the negotiation of sexual intimacy

Some people with physical disabilities experience difficulties in forming and maintaining intimate and sexual relationships (Taleporos and McCabe, 2001). Individuals with physical impairments may variously be seen as inferior, ‘not up to scratch’ and can be less valued than those thought to embody the cultural ideal of ‘normality’ (Edwards and Imrie, 2003). The loss of an anatomical part such as an arm or a leg can therefore set up a complex series of perceptual, emotional and psychological responses that can limit or prevent individuals from fully experiencing the kinds of intimate relationships that many of their ‘non-disabled’ counterparts can more freely enjoy (Oliver, 1990). Drawing on a series of semi-structured interviews and a group visual workshop with five men and two women with varying acquired and congenital limb absences, this study explores the variety of ways in which sexual relationships and intimacies are negotiated and managed. Certain participants reported a great deal of anxiety regarding their perceptions of sexual attractiveness, and experienced feelings of loss of desirability as a sexual partner. Others reported engaging in an ‘active management of visual information’ about the body, through methods of concealment and exposure. Compensatory strategies were also reported as a way to effectively maintain existing intimate relationships. Finally, hyper-masculine or hyper-feminine enactments of sexuality were described within a range of social and intimate contexts as a means to ‘normalise’ the disabled body. The findings of this study provide a richer and more contextualised understanding of the highly complex adjustment process faced by individuals with limb absence, who actively engage in sexual and intimate relationships

Visible lesbians and invisible bisexuals: Appearance and visual identities among bisexual women

A number of feminist scholars have argued that dress and appearance can be used to critique the dominant culture and explore alternative subjectivities. Research on non-heterosexual visual identities has explored the role that appearance and clothing practices can play in the construction of individual identities and collective communities. However, bisexual women are largely invisible in these discussions. The minimal existing research suggests that bisexual women are unable to communicate their sexuality through their clothing and appearance. This study explored how bisexual women manage their bodies and appearance in relation to their bisexuality. Qualitative interviews were conducted with 20 self-identified bisexual women and the data were analysed using thematic analysis. The participants reported particular visual aesthetics associated with an embodied lesbian identity; however, they reported no visual image of bisexual women. Nonetheless, despite their lack of access to a distinct visual identity, the women negotiated ways in which to incorporate their bisexual identity into their dress and appearance, and considered their bisexuality an important aspect of their identity, which they would like to be recognised and acknowledged